Riders enjoy return of San Rafael race

It was a homecoming weekend for professional cycling in downtown San Rafael, and riders from around Marin made sure Saturday's criterium had a local flavor.

Marin riders certainly left their mark on the revival of the San Rafael Criterium, now called the Carrera de San Rafael after a two-year layoff. A Marin-based team (PROMAN/Paradigm) dominated the high-caliber women's category 1-2 race. A 37-year-old Greenbrae native (Jeff Angermann) won the men's masters category 1-3 event. And a young San Rafael rider (Zach Williams) enjoyed every second on top of the victory stand after winning the juniors 17-18 year-old race.

There were plenty of other successes for Marin riders too, but most everyone was happy about the return of the tight kilometer-long oval centered in the middle of Marin's busiest downtown.

"It's an awesome race, we definitely enjoy racing in front of our community," said Fairfax's Rachel Lloyd, who won the women's category 1-2 race. "It's kind of cool to race on the same streets I pedal down with my groceries. We had a lot of fun."

Lloyd, who edged teammate Shelley Olds for the top women's crown, said this was her first criterium win. San Anselmo's Helene Drumm, also a member of Lloyd's team, placed fourth. Helene's teammate and sister, Kristin, placed seventh.

The men's premier event, the pro category 1-2, came down to a tactical game between five racers. Menlo Park's Owen Laine finished first followed by Sacramento's Michael Sayers - a five-time second-place finisher in San Rafael. Fairfax's John Hunt was part of the lead breakaway group and finished fifth.

"I followed that early group and stayed with them," said Hunt whose teammate, Andy Jacques-Maynes, joined him on the breakaway and finished third. "Once Andy came up it became my job to keep us moving and help him win. We weren't able to pull it off today."

The five lead riders lapped the field and rejoined the main pack, meaning teammates of the other lead riders could help with blocking, drafting and speed control. The jumble made for an exciting and confusing final push.

"I was digging pretty deep at the finish," Laine said. "This is probably my last race of the year so I decided to really go for it."

The junior race, filled with 15-18 year-old boys, caused nearly as much finish-line excitement. Miller, a San Rafael native who attends Urban High in San Francisco, got some help from his teammates on the East Bay Tieni Duro team and won the first criterium he ever entered.

"Yes!" Miller shouted after squirting sparkling apple cider on his teammates and receiving kisses on each cheek from trophy girls on the podium.

While Miller was winning the 17-18 division, San Ramon's Nick Abal was capturing the 15-16 year-old crown. Tyler Brand of Fairfax placed third.

Earlier in the day, the Angermann family of Greenbrae got a thrill when Jeff Angermann, a Redwood High grad now living in Nevada, won the masters division category 1-3 race. Like all the adult races Saturday, the event was the finale of the NorCal/Nevada Cycling Association series. Down seven points to series leader Billy Clark, Angermann beat him to leave the two tied for the series lead. Clark, of Livermore, won the series title on the tiebreaker.

"If he hadn't finished right behind me in second place, I would have won the series," Angermann said. "I love being here. We need this event in San Rafael. The downtown has seen such a re-infusion of dynamic events here. Things like this make San Rafael a healthy, great place."

Redwood City's Alexis Alexander took the victory in the women's category 3 race, followed closely by Sonoma's Tracy Barhydt. Barhydt rides for Eastside Cycles of Petaluma.

"I'm having an excellent day, this is one of the better criteriums I have raced in," Barhydt said. "I watched this race before and feel lucky that I finally got to ride in it."

The number of spectators swelled and tapered throughout the day as people walked the course and checked out the cycling expo nearby. Organizers, meanwhile, were ready to deem the event a success.

"We didn't bring this back for a one- or two-year run," coordinator Wil Matthews said. "This is a great experience and we can't wait to make it even better."

Et cetera

- The crash of the day honors go to San Mateo's Russ Willsher, a masters category 4-5 racer. Willsher was in the lead midway through before blowing a tire on the downhill turn at Fourth and A streets. He launched over his handlebars at approximately 40 mph, slid 50 feet on the pavement and slammed into hay bales set up in the intersection.

Willsher was left with no skin on his right cheek, a big gash on his nose, a bad scrape on his butt and two bleeding knees. Luckily, no bones were broken.

"The tire blew like a gunshot," Willsher said. "Man, I was feeling really good today, too. I was having fun out there."

- Will Hansen, a cyclist and motorcycle rider from Modesto, enjoyed his first trip to San Rafael as one of the event's pace-vehicle drivers. Hansen has worked his share of races, seeing plenty of wild crashes, and gave the Carrera his thumbs-up.

"It's nice here. It's a lot like the Nevada City event," said Hansen, dressed in heavy leathers and referee's stripes. "This race really looks like it belongs here."